Tag: 2023 Week 9

Cowboys Final Numbers: Important takeaways before moving on to Giants

Inside the numbers of the Cowboys 28-23 loss to the Eagles in Week 9 and what it means going forward to face New York. | From @ReidDHanson

After losing 42-10 to San Francisco in Week 5, the Cowboys had something to prove. They had to prove to themselves, their fans, and the world, they could compete against the best.

Dallas’ five wins in 2023 were against fairly inferior opponents. The Cowboys had a growing reputation of being a team that could bully the little guy but would wilt under the pressure when faced with a worthy opponent.

Against Philadelphia, they had an opportunity to silence critics and put themselves in the conversation as a legit postseason challenger. They also had a prime opportunity to close the gap on the division and send their rivals into the bye week on a sour note.

Alas, none of that was to be. Dallas lost 28-23 in a nailbiter. They kept their critics energized and dug themselves a hole to climb from, siting three wins behind the Eagles at the season’s midpoint.

The numbers break down the good, bad and what lies ahead.

3 Major takeaways from Cowboys loss include swapping Gallup for Turpin

The Cowboys leave Philadelphia with plenty to clean up but with enough positives to see a path to excellence. | From @cdpiglet

The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles played another NFC East classic on Sunday, with the Cowboys unfortunately ending up on the short end of the Lincoln Financial Field scoreboard. The game was back and forth, with Philadelphia getting the early lead and Dallas going ahead by halftime. The Eagles had a dominant third quarter, and Dallas made a run in the fourth that wasn’t quite enough to pull out the victory.

The Cowboys and Eagles will each leave the game feeling good about how they played overall. Both quarterbacks performed great, there weren’t many big mistakes, AJ Brown and CeeDee Lamb both showed up, and the defenses played well enough to win. Philadelphia simply made more plays and escaped with a win.

On paper, the schedule looks great for the Cowboys in the next few weeks compared to Philadelphia. They need to go over some of the major takeaways from this game and get over the final hump in the biggest matchups in the future.

Twitter reactions to egregious officiating in Cowboys’ loss to Eagles

The Cowboys didn’t lose because of the officials, but they certainly didn’t get a fair shake in the Week 9 loss. A look at how folks reacted on Twitter. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Dallas Cowboys didn’t lose because of the NFL referees. Let’s get that out of the way first and foremost. In every game, there are a multitude of plays that can be called either way and once the ball starts rolling in one direction, it’s easy to pay attention to every greivance on one side and ignore the ones on the other.

However, the calls the refs made, and others they didn’t make, certainly made the Dallas Cowboys’ efforts more of an uphill battle than they did for the Philadelphia Eagles in the 28-23 game on Sunday afternoon.

There has been a long tradition in the NFL where the Cowboys are constantly on the short end of the officiating stick; actual studies have been done on this in the past. However, more often than not, as long as time is left on the clock, the results almost inevitably end up being back in a team’s control.  Sunday’s loss had numerous examples of the Cowboys being screwed by the calls, but also messing up themselves.

Dak Prescott stepping out of bounds on a two-point conversion was not the ref’s fault. Tyler Smith false starting on first-and-goal from the six yard line was not the ref’s fault. Either of those things

What was the ref’s fault? Plenty. There was the lack of an offensive pass interference call when Devonta Smith used an arm bar to create separation for his TD against DaRon Bland. There was the lack of a DPI call when CeeDee Lamb was grabbed on a deep ball the very next play.

There was the DPI called against Stephon Gilmore on an uncatchable ball that landed well outside the sideline on a throwaway. There was the penalty on Chuma Edoga for not declaring eligible that negated a Tony Pollard TD. Three plays later there was an overrule that claimed Luke Schoonmaker was down before crossing the goal line. The refs threw a flag for illegal hands to the face but picked it up when the replay showed there was clearly hands to the face.

Again, the Dallas Cowboys had a chance to win this game despite these officiating errors, and they didn’t come through. But the refs were really bad in this game and as such, the reaction on social media let them have it.

RT Terence Steele is a glaring problem Cowboys need to address

The Cowboys need to adjust because Terence Steele is at the bottom of the NFL in pass protection and his run blocking isn’t making up for it. From @ReidDHanson

Terence Steele is a problem.

The Cowboys starting right tackle has not only been a weakness of the offensive line this season, but he’s been a liability. On Sunday night in Philadelphia, he made every bit the impact CeeDee Lamb made, but instead of for the positive, it was unequivocally for the negative.

It wasn’t just one great player victimizing the floundering young tackle either. The Eagles were rotating left edge players in. It was as if Oprah were giving away pressures to the studio audience at LDE – “you get a pressure, you get a pressure, you get a pressure!”

By early count, Steele was credited with eight pressures on the day. It was the same number of pressures Steele yielded against San Francisco earlier in the season. For the sake of context, Micah Parsons, arguably the best pass rusher in the NFL, is averaging just over six pressures per game.

In other words, these top teams have been getting an above Parsons-level performance by their rotation of bodies lined up over Steele. That’s like gifting the opponent an All-Pro player each game.

It’s also important to point out pressures don’t count plays in which he’s beaten but the ball has been released before the actual distance has been closed.

Mike McCarthy’s offense relies on quick game and less time in the pocket. Dak Prescott has one shortest average pocket times in the NFL this season which benefits his linemen’s pressure numbers. Steele’s numbers could, and maybe should, look much worse.

Pro Football Focus, who grades overall play and not just official pressures logged, has been fairly consistent in their grading of Steele. He’s currently rated No. 67 in the NFL amongst OTs. His grade BEFORE Sunday’s contest, had his pass blocking score in the bottom 10 of the NFL. It’s safe to assume he’ll grade even further down the rankings after this film has been digested.

Steele’s issues returning from a catastrophic knee injury suffered late last season are somewhat expected. It takes time to rebound and frankly, not all players are up to the challenge.

His Cowboys teammate, Michael Gallup, is in a similar situation with his return from a knee injury. He suffered his knee injury during the 2021 season and he’s yet to return to form.

It’s important to point out, Steele has never been a good pass protector. Even at his best last season, the 26-year-old was generally wading in the waters of average. It was his run blocking that earned him his enormous contract extension over the offseason.

Like Gallup, Steele was signed fresh off an injury in hopes he’d reclaim form. Like Gallup, those optimistic results have yet to be seen.

Even Steele’s run blocking has been well below league average this season. Yet time is on Steele’s side. The Cowboys are committed, whether they like it or not, so it’s Steele or bust for the foreseeable future in Dallas.

Steele’s tremendous work ethic and determination assure he’ll do everything within his power to get back to form. Until he’s able to physically regain form, it’s up to the Dallas coaching staff to help him out.

Giving him help blocking and frequent chips from TEs and RBs will be key to helping Steele survive this season. He can’t be left alone like he has been the majority of the time, or the results will likely be the same.

Steele has been a massive problem for the Cowboys passing game and his run blocking is doing nothing to make up for it. While his issues are understandable given his recent injury, they cannot be ignored.

It’s imperative the Cowboys find ways to help out their young tackle because he’s drowning and pulling the entire Cowboys offense down with him.

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Cowboys can’t complete comeback, fall to Eagles 28-23

The Cowboys couldn’t quite make the miracle happen, falling to the Eagles in a hard fought NFC East scrum.

This one is tough to swallow. The Dallas Cowboys entered the game looking to take control of the NFC East and erase any thoughts they couldn’t compete with the best teams in the league. After falling in ugly fashion to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 5, Dallas proved they were among the better teams in the NFC on Sunday in Philadelphia. It wasn’t enough, however, as despite a huge game from quarterback Dak Prescott, they didn’t have enough to complete the victory.

A final drive with little time left fell a few yards short of the end zone when CeeDee Lamb was tackled inside the 10-yard line. The Cowboys had to overcome a ton of questionable referee calls, a ton of bad luck bounces and their own egregious mistakes and almost did it. But almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades and Dallas falls to 5-3 after losing 28-23.

The Eagles now sit at 8-1 and have a comfortable 2.5 game lead in the NFC East as they reach their bye week.

More coverage to come.

Cowboys take lead with another Prescott touchdown toss

The Cowboys took the lead after another strong drive by Dak Prescott.

The passing offense has found their rhythm. After Dak Prescott led the club to a touchdown drive on their second possession, a three-and-out for the defense put the offense right back on the field. Prescott again was surgical, avoiding pressure with his legs and using his arm to find his targets.

After an escape and conversion to CeeDee Lamb to move the chains, the first touchdown scorer Jake Ferguson was in line for his second. Only a defensive pass interference kept that from happening, and Dallas took advantage of their goal-to-go situation.

Prescott found Kavontae Turpin crossing the end zone for his second touhdown of the season and gave Dallas a 14-7 lead.

Cowboys respond, match Eagles TD with Prescott-to-Ferguson connection

Dak Prescott used his legs and then connected on big plays through the air for the tying score.

The Dallas Cowboys decided to test the Philadelphia Eagles’ run defense on their opening drive, and they found themselves in 3rd-and-long. An incompletion sent the ball over to Philly. A bad spot on a Jalen Hurts run brought up 4th-and-short, and the Tush Push brought about a new set of downs.

Another fourth-down conversion eventually led to a Kenneth Gainwell TD and an early Eagles’ lead, but the Cowboys were able to respond. It took a while and multiple Dak Prescott scrambles on drop backs, but Dallas got to their own fourth-down attempt where Prescott found CeeDee Lamb for the conversion.

One play later, Prescott found tight end Jake Ferguson for this second touchdown in two weeks.

The game is tied at seven early in the second quarter.

Week 9 Inactives: Cowboys have full OL with Tyron Smith, Eagles without Roby

The Cowboys have their full arsenal vs,. the Eagles with offensive tackle Tyron Smith active for Dallas in the divisional bout.

The Dallas Cowboys enter Lincoln Financial Field for a crucial matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles. Whoever wins comes out of the game with control of the NFC East, and Dallas is 100% heading into the matchup.

After early concern that left tackle Tyron Smith would be out, he’s active for the Cowboys. It was a neck issue for Smith, but he practiced Friday, albeit limited. His backup, Chuma Edoga, is also active after practicing under the limited designation all week. It’s an ankle and knee issue for the 26-year-old.

That’s the depth of Dallas’ injuries while Philadelphia announced early that four players would be out. The most notable is backup cornerback Bradley Roby, who’s a nine-year veteran. As things stand, Cowboys-Eagles will be a heavyweight match, with both teams near full-strength. Take a look at the full list of inactives before kickoff at 3:25 p.m., televised on FOX.

Week 9 Rooting Guide: Don’t look now, but Cowboys control own destiny for 2023

A look at how Dallas somehow took control of their own playoff path, along with a rooting guide for the handful of NFC games. | From @KDDrummondNFL

Just four weeks ago, the landscape was much different. The Dallas Cowboys were thoroughly embarrassed on national television. Facing the team that had eliminated them from the tournament each of the last two seasons, Dallas brass claimed the Week 5 matchup with the San Francisco 49ers was a measuring stick. The club was weighed and found wanting, to the tune of a 42-10 shellacking that dropped the team’s record to 3-2.

Three games later, and Dallas is in position to take control of the NFC race for the No. 1seed as their season approaches it’s midpoint. With two wins sandwiched around a bye week, the Cowboys have watched the rest of the conference retreat towards the gooey middle. Somehow, the club has survived the apocalypse and find themselves in control of their own destiny.

 

 

Big 12 Power Rankings: Cowboys emerge from Bedlam title contenders

Updated Big 12 power rankings. Conference starting to sort itself out with just a few weeks remaining in the regular season.

In the wake of Week 10’s results, the Big 12 has found its favorites for the Big 12 title game in Arlington, Texas.

Though there are still several weeks to go in conference play, the Oklahoma State Cowboys walked out of Bedlam in control of their path to the game. Their win over Oklahoma put them in a tie for first place with the Longhorns at 5-1, and they have a very favorable remaining schedule.

Oklahoma State finishes the season at UCF, at Houston, and at home vs. BYU in their regular season finale. Those three teams have a combined conference record of 5-13.

The Cowboys are a far different team than the one that was blown out at home by South Alabama.

With their controversial win over Oklahoma and Texas’ win over Kansas State, the front-runners for the conference title game have emerged. It’s not impossible for Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma or Iowa State to find their way to Arlington, but they’ll need help along the way to make the trip to the DFW Metroplex.

Here’s a look at this week’s Big 12 power rankings.